


Ready Aim Fire

by howlittleweare



Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: Avatar the Last Airbender AU, Hinted at Orla/Helen, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:42:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28909503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/howlittleweare/pseuds/howlittleweare
Summary: At the extravagant, annual party celebrating the end of the 100 year war thousands of people attend each year, Blue, a Southern Water Tribe teen, meets 4 benders that seem to have nothing in common except for one boy and his search for the hidden library guarded by the wise spirit, Glendower.
Relationships: Richard Gansey III/Blue Sargent, Ronan Lynch/Adam Parrish
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

When Blue awoke the morning of her sixteenth birthday, it wasn’t morning. At this time of year, it was hard to judge what time of day it was, but since their normally crowded hut was empty, Blue guessed she had overslept.

Maura would have never allowed this on a normal day, but since it was Blue’s birthday- and Persephone had her out late helping deliver a baby- she let it pass. Her list of chores had been divided up between her aunts and cousins and friends, and Blue was given the day to enjoy how she wanted. Rolling off her designated cot and slipping on her fur lined boots, Blue reached for her blue parka and gloves hanging on the wall above. The midnight fire was nothing but white smoke now in the center of the Sargent home.

The tiger seal teeth beads clinked as Orla stepped through from the bath house. “Mornin’ birthday girl.” She played with the betrothal necklace around her neck and chuckled at Blue’s spiky bed-head. It was the most beautiful necklace she had received yet, Blue thought, but she doubted it would be around her neck much longer. Orla was always getting in and out of relationships with foolish tribesman and visitors that fell head over heels for her striking features.

“How old are you again? Four?” Orla teased. Blue didn’t even give her the satisfaction of a fake laugh. Blue shook out her blanket and refolded it, straightening her bed. She shivered when Orla pulled the door flaps open to walk outside. She returned shortly with an armful of scrolls. Blue grabbed a lukewarm bowl of fish soup and sat on the worn mats surrounding the fire pit. Orla sat across from her and began opening the scrolls. “What time is it?” Blue asked through a mouthful of soup.

“A little after noon,” she dismissed. Orla grabbed a blank scroll from a bucket near the front door and her ink and glass pen that another admirer had given her. Blue watched her cousin scrawl lengthy responses to clients and admirers that sent mail. She could only imagine what mystical bullshit Orla would write down. “The stars are telling me you’ll have good luck this year,” or -if its a suitor she’s replying to- something along the lines of “Unless you bring me a moonstone with the sound of the ocean in it, I cannot marry you.”

Orla was always coming up with elaborate ideas and schemes to get as much as she could out of a relationship before she got out of the relationship. The Sargent family hadn’t seen any boy last longer than a few weeks when it came to Orla. It was always a new face at the door or a new name on a love letter. They came and went too often for Blue to pay much attention to the names or nations anymore. There was only one recurring name that Blue sometimes saw a glimpse of. Some fancy penmanship, much too pretty to be a boy’s, with a fire nation emblem on it. Whoever it was that was capable of holding Orla’s attention for so long, it really wasn’t any of Blue’s business

Wind chimes rang out side and Blue could hear children laughing. School must have just been let out, Blue figured she had minutes before she was roped into babysitting. All the mothers and grandmothers came to Blue with the excuse “oh but they love you so much, you’re so good with them” whenever they wanted a day off. Just because Blue helped deliver kids, didn’t mean she wanted to be responsible for them.

Calla stepped into the tent and fixed her eyes on Blue. “You,” she said, pointing her painted nail at Blue, “Go to the post office and see if there are any new shipments of coriander.”

Orla looked up quizzically from where she sat. Calla explained “I ordered a few bundles weeks ago and they still haven’t come in. If those herbs aren’t in the store...” She didn’t finish, but Blue could tell it was probably going to be something threatening anyways. Whatever, at least it would get her out of entertaining kids for a little bit.

The wind along the way pulled Blue’s hair to and fro and ruined the calculated chaos Blue originally planned it to be. By the time she reached the trade shop/information post/post office, Blue’s hair was a lost cause, just the way she liked it. Jesse grinned at Blue with the same warm tug of lips he gave everyone in town when she stepped into the store. “ANT,” he said in his loud voice. “WHAT BRINGS YOU IN TODAY?”

“Checking to see if Calla’s coriander came in.” Blue said, walking up to lean on the counter. An open vase of jelly sticks was offered to her while Jesse excused himself to look in the back. She chewed on the cold candy as he returned and laid a package on the counter between them. “TODAY’S YOUR BIRTHDAY, AIN’T IT, ANT?”

She took her time chewing the candy, looking disinterested at Jesse while he looked patiently back at her. The store was empty except for the two of them, she shifted stallingly on the snow-packed floor. His eyes slowly blinked at her and she knew she could never win at this game. Blue finally caved and answered simply “Yeah.” Jesse chuckled and wished her a happy birthday, waving her off while Blue left with the package. “Later, Dittley.” He was an odd old man, but Blue liked him. 

The afternoon moon glowed carefully as Blue was nearly blindsided by four kids playing war. Their warrior paint was smeared and their wooden swords were chipped. One screamed a hello to Blue after she head butted Blue’s stomach. Blue doubled over and groaned a hello back. She remembered when she was younger and all her classmates wanted to play war, but it had never interested Blue. Their nation had lost so much in the hundred year war, why they would straight back to it never made sense to Blue.

Lessons with Persephone were always Blue’s favorite part of her daily routine. Persephone was a very skilled healer, and that was something Blue found more interesting than fighting. “The art of bending is a vast field. It can be used for so much more than fighting,” she always told Blue during their lessons. 

Blue entered the school, the only building in their village that used architecture to build instead of just hollowing out a pile of snow and throwing some animal skins on it. The Northern Water Tribe sent members to help rebuild the south pole after the war. It had taken many years to rebuild the original tribe, but when it was finished, the people decided to branch out and develop two other villages along the shore. They had planned to model the south pole like the North with actual buildings and an organized system. The South built the school, but never really jumped on remodeling the rest. Nonetheless, the Southern Tribe had a come a long way. During the warmer months, which were the months that the sun never set, they even received tourists brave enough to brace the cold.

In a classroom down the east hall, Blue joined her mother’s best friend on the floor. They kneeled in front of a wooden mannequin, used to practice healing. Persephone said nothing to Blue about her birthday, which wasn’t strange since Persephone never spoke about things that didn’t really matter to the current situation. A bucket of water sat between them, a stream rose from the bucket and suddenly covered Persephone’s arms. The water glowed beautifully in the dark room.

Blue reached her hands into the bucket and retreated with a thin layer of water clinging to her hands. Blue was sadly nowhere near as skilled a bender as the rest of her family. No matter how hard she trained, she couldn’t control the water enough to do anything other than cover her hands. It was enough to heal though and that was enough for Blue. With concentration, the water along Blue’s hands began to glow as well, Persephone hummed approvingly. They began their work, using the dummy to practice.

After class, Blue made her way with a leather lantern towards the village gates. She climbed atop the wall and sat by the unmanned lookout post. 

Stars brightly sparkled from high above, a shooting star raced across the navy sky. It was one of Blue's favorite things about living in the South Pole. She spent her whole life watching stars, studying their patterns, learning the constellations. Her family studied them, they used the stars to tell stories of what happened on others’ birthdays and what it meant to be born on that certain day. They even used them to predict the future.

Blue's mother's specialty was reading the aurora australiaus. She adored the southern lights. Though not as extravagant as the North Pole's, they still shone beautifully during the winter solstice. Maura told Blue every time her daughter's birthday came around, she was named after the southern lights. "Blue" because that was the color that glowed brightest when she was pregnant with Blue. 

Unique? Yes, but it got her strange looks and barely suppressed chuckles from travelers. It seemed quite unoriginal to others, she supposed, since blue was the representative color of the water tribes.

"Blue? Come inside!” She heard Maura's voice call from along the row of huts, probably the Sargent home. Blue sighed and climbed down, she brushed the snow off her coat and trudged towards the promising warm fire inside her home. "Your going to get eaten by a tiger seal, Blue, if you keep going out at night," a neighbor said in passing.

"It's always night," she grumbled back, hugging her arms to her chest in an attempt to keep warm. As she walked over the snow bank, other villagers out and about waved at her and wished her a happy birthday.

Inside the Sargent’s hut, animal skins covered the tightly packed snow walls, cots lined the circular wall from one side of the entrance, all the way around, a space for the doorway that lead into the bathhouse, to the other side. A large fire pit in the center burned warmly, crackling and glowing non-stop all through the winter seasons. A hole in the ceiling over the fire let out the smoke, a vent made of animal bones and skin kept from snow falling inside though.

Her whole family sat perched around the flames on cots, munching on tiger seal meat and chatting casually. The Sargent family consisted of all women. Of course there were some men, but they didn't live with them. Some of them left long ago to help rebuild the kingdoms after the war, but most of the women never married.

Blue kicked off her boots and sat between Orla and Calla. Maura handed her a slab of meat and told her to eat up, sipping her herbal tea suspiciously. Blue stared suspiciously back at her as she took a clay bowl of hot soup and tried to ignore the equally suspicious side glance from Calla and smirk from Orla.

As she came closer to finishing her meal, the other women sitting around chatting quieted down, Jimma shushing them. Maura stood silently and bended the steam wafting from the big bronze pot. The steam filled the room like a fog, but warm and mystical instead of cold and eerie. Maura took powders and herbs from a pouch on the belt slung around her waist and threw them into the steam, painting the blank canvas with extravagant colors, using her bending to move the steam around and spread the powder.

Out of the thick steam rose a gray mountain, tall and proud, with a figure standing at the bottom. Blue and greens trails of powders spouted from the top of the mountain and spread throughout the cloud, dancing over Blue's head. Though Blue couldn't see anything beyond the women beside her, she heard her mother begin the story she heard every year.

"Sixteen years ago, when I was pregnant with you, Blue, the spirits gave me a sign. Every night that they shined, I walked to the base of the mountain to watch the southern lights. The colors were always beautiful, but the one that shone brightest was blue. It seemed to always try to grasp my attention, to show me something.  
I realized when you were born that you were destined to do great things. I named you Blue."

The steam dissipated when Persephone stood and parted the cloud with her delicate hands and the fellow women clapped, smiling eagerly. Blue rolled her eyes but smiled as well. Maura crossed the circle, side stepping the fire pit, to hug Blue tightly.

When she returned to her seat, Persephone looked to Maura for permission. "May I?"  
Maura nodded and grinned at Blue. She was actually starting to get creeped out.   
"There comes a time when a person should travel. Go on a journey, discover something, maybe save the world," she joked in her light, airy voice.

"Wait-" Blue had stopped smiling, she was confused.

"We all had our little soul-searching journeys at one time. Now it's your turn, Blue, before you get too old and miss your chance. You were born in the southern water tribe, you've grown up here. You'll probably return and live the rest of your life here. It's time you get out there before you take on any major responsibilities here.”

Orla tossed her hair and giggled at Blue's perplexed face, leaning closer. "I wish my trip was as good as yours is gonna be. I spent mine on Ember Island at the end of summer, everyone had gone home already."

"Your mother and I have arranged a special trip for you. In two weeks, a ship will take you to the Earth kingdom. You'll stay with you're Aunt Neeve in Ba Sing Se for a month."  
Blue was silent, since when did her family leave the South Pole? She'd never heard of this before now. Why her Aunt Neeve? Maura and Neeve hadn't spoken in years.

"I don’t understand," it seemed like no one was listening to her.

"You'll be there just in time for the United Nations Festival!" Orla squealed, falling over onto her animal skin cot, "There will be all different types of people there from all nations. All different classes, not to mention all the boys!"

Maura laughed, Calla rolled her eyes. Eventually, when Orla stopped being dramatic, everyone turned towards Blue for her reaction.

Blue stood, her thoughts were racing. She couldn’t think with all the women talking and laughing and staring at her. This was a lot to process. Blue ducked out of the doorway, grabbing a lantern hanging on the wall on her way out. She heard the surprised voices of her aunts and cousins, but she didn't pay attention to what they said.

The cold wind was a shock to her burning skin, the steam was so warm and comforting inside, nothing like the cold and harsh environment outside. Stumbling down the slippery slopes with her feet sinking into the delicate snow, Blue walked towards the gateway of the village. She had to get away to think. 

There were only three villages in the South Pole, but they were spread apart, it was rural and barren between the civilizations. 

Blue passed the village gates and was getting farther into the tundra. Tiger seals howled and barked at the moon from the shore. Polar bear dogs hunted in the dark, searching for prey. In the distance Blue could see the abandoned fire nation ship stuck in the ice, yet to be removed, even though the war had been over for many years. Sinking down onto a snow drift, Blue watched a warm cloud escape her lips and drift up into the air until it dissipated. She liked to go outside the village to be alone, to think, sometimes to practice, though she never got any better. The only skill Blue seemed able to prevail in was healing. Maura taught her to read the stars, Calla taught her to navigate. All of Blue's family were such talented benders and had so much to give to the world, or at least the village and any visiting tourists. Sometimes Blue felt like an outsider, lacking any notable bending skills.

Animals paced in the snow just beyond the reach of her yellow lantern. Sometimes their eyes caught the beams and glittered curiously. When soft feet padded up next to her, Blue didn't turn around, she knew who it was. Maura sank to the ground next to her and wrapped an arm around her, watching the wolves chase away arctic hares.

"Mom, why am I being sent away?"

She took a minute to look down at Blue, her fingers playing with the delicate fur lining of her coat. "We aren't sending you away. We're giving you the chance to do something different, to see something other than snow and ice."

"But I'm not sure if I even want to go-"

“I don’t recall raising such a timid child,” Maura smirked. Blue elbowed Maura in the side and they grew serious again. “Like Persephone said, you've lived your whole life in the South Pole, there is a whole world out there for you to explore. Different foods to try, new cultures to learn about, people to meet. Now I can't guarantee you'll love your Aunt Neeve, but you'll love Ba Sing Se. It's the greatest city in the Earth Kingdom."

Blue was quiet, she didn't look at her mother. She stared at the sky and wished for, well, she wasn't sure what she wished for. Maura hummed as she looked at he stars, too. "I know you're scared, but I promise, this will be a wonderful trip.”

Blue looked back at her mother, she was still nervous, but the sense of anxiety had lessened. Her mother really wanted this for her, enough to contact her half sister at least. A change of scenery would be nice, she supposed. "Let's go home."

They stood and locked arms while they made their way back to the village, Blue's yellow lantern lighting their way. When they came to the village gates, most of the people had already gone inside to sleep. A peaceful silence had settled over the small town, only the soft thuds of their feet on the snow and the whistle of wind between the houses dared make a sound.

Before they stepped into their own home, Maura turned Blue towards her and hugged her tightly. "It's a beautiful world out there, Blue, filled with mysteries just waiting for you to discover them. You just have to take the chance and go for it, don't hold back or you'll miss your opportunity."


	2. Chapter 2

The heavy door swung open with a creak, much like it had the first time Gansey had visited the seemingly abandoned house, and he immediately felt the contrast in temperatures of the outside's muggy, summer heat and the inside's icy chill. He didn't bother calling out, he wouldn't get a response anyway. The room he was standing in used to be beautiful, at a time before Ronan. Golden silk tapestries hung along the walls, portraits of past owners and their families all faded over time, and two crescent windows on the farthest wall looked out at a cement courtyard with a broken fountain. A pipe connected to a well in the middle of the courtyard led into the house somewhere on the second floor.

On a raised slat of flooring, aged mats laid around a low table with light water rings in the dark wood. A thick layer of dust covered everything in the room except for a trail of footsteps leading to the staircase on the west wall of the room.

Following the path, Gansey climbed the stairs, careful not to let his high class robes touch the dusky walls or railing. He would have sent a messenger hawk, but he knew Ronan wouldn't read it. He had more important things to do than deliver messages to Ronan, yet here he was.

The second floor was even colder, where Ronan resided. There he was, lounging on an ice throne draped in animal skin blankets like a moody prince.

Gansey snorted to himself, but didn't give an explanation when Ronan quirked an eyebrow at him. If he stated this aloud, Ronan would incase him in a block of ice, not that Gansey couldn't melt himself out.

He stepped into the room, glancing around dismissively. A worn mattress sat in the corner, a table laid in pieces, probably broken in one of Ronan's moods. Gansey was tempted to make a fire out of the useless wood, maybe warm the room up a little.

"Do you even sleep? Or do you just sit in that chair all day?" Ronan didn't answer, just twitched his lips amusedly. Sometimes it was hard to remember what Ronan used to be like before he came to live in the city. Though Gansey could understand why, he loved the North Pole, and was angered that he couldn't return. Gansey sighed and decided to get down to what he came here for.

"Ronan, will you-"

"No."

"Why not?" Gansey crossed his arms, he was used to his friend's stubborn behavior.

"Because I don't associate with peasants." He droned, switching from resting his head on his right hand to his left.

"You don't associate with anyone." He accused, a single chuckle came from Ronan. Gansey crossed to one of the ice-lights on the wall. They were similar to the glowing green crystals mined from the catacombs under Ba Sing Se, but made entirely of ice. A low, eerie, blue light emitted from within, Gansey never could understand how Ronan made them do that. They reflected on the still water that sat in a waist high trough that ran along three of the walls, a pipe from outside brought clean water in when pumped.

"What if I told you Declan would be there?"

The cold blue of Ronan's eyes flickered and he sat up. He didn't believe Gansey of course, but he wanted to test his friend. "Will he?"

"No," Gansey immediately relented. Ronan smirked and leaned back. "But plenty of wealthy aristocrats and representatives will be there. I'm sure you can find some kind of trouble to stir up."

Ronan smirked, standing up and stretching his arms above his head. He plucked a silver cup from the pile of random things he's stolen, and bended a stream of water into the cup. The rivulet almost splashed onto Gansey's maroon robes but he moved out of the way. Ronan offered it to Gansey, who glared and declined, and drank it himself. As he downed the water, Gansey glanced over his shoulder at the boarded up window.

Through the slits of the boards, Gansey could see a better view of the courtyard. Out in the yard laid a sleeping beast, its nose twitched as a breeze brought new smells to its nostrils. It was bigger than last time Gansey saw it, almost full grown now. He remembered the exact conversation he and Ronan had when the water bender first brought it home.

"What is that?" Gansey sounded repulsed. Ronan ignored him while he carried the furry creature in his arms into the house. "Her name's Chainsaw."

"Where did you get it?" Gansey followed them inside. He stayed close to the door when Ronan bent to put the four legged creature on the ground. It was about the size of a fox, but it was just a cub. Who knew how big it would get. The creature sniffed around nervously before laying on a padded mat. Ronan held his hand in front of its nose and it sniffed warily. When it lowered its head again in submission, he ran his hand from head to tail and back again several times.

Ronan looked back over his shoulder and smirked, still petting the sleepy cub "I bought her from some animal traders in the lower ring. Very illegal, I'm sure you're disappointed in me." Ronan sarcastically mused. Gansey hadn't answered, just slammed the door behind him and went back to his own home.

Ronan slumped back into his chair and tossed the cup back into the pile, it made a loud clank. "I'll think about it," Ronan dismissed. Gansey was brought out of his thoughts and straightened his heavy outer robe.

"I'll mark you down as 'yes'," Gansey turned to descend back down the stairs. That was easy enough, now he just had to get Adam to agree.

Traveling on the monorail system to the outer ring of Ba Sing Se was not one of Gansey's favorite things, it was loud and the seats were uncomfortable, and riding anywhere but the upper class carts was unthinkable. The coach compartments were crowded and smelled awful. That and he usually got mugged by a pick pocket.

At the station, not many people were waiting for the train. This was the upper ring, and most wealthy families that lived there didn't have a reason to travel to the middle ring, much less the lower ring. Across the platforms, a girl with soft brown ringlets and emerald eyes smiled at him. Gansey smiled back and wondered if she knew anything of the spirit world. He felt the rumbles under his feet before he saw the train pull into the station. The first cart whooshed past him before sliding to a stop. His fire nation robes easily followed the wind chasing the train, Gansey smoothed them back down and checked his belt for his money and passport, just in case a thief had taken the advantage, it was a good habit to have when living in Ba Sing Se. He wouldn't need his passport boarding here, but returning he would.

Workers stepped forward and slid the wooden panels apart for boarding passengers, something they only did for the upper ring. Once on the train, Gansey found a seat with a soft turtleduck feather pillow and sat, turning to look out upon his city. The Earth King's palace rose high above the other building in the center of the ring, a small wall circling it. The buildings surrounding it in ripples were high class restaurants and tea shops, spas and bath houses, music stores and art galleries, acupuncture and healers' offices. A river cut through the rings and wrapped around the king's castle and the shops, separating them from the wealthy neighborhoods. It ran back out through the rings and fed into Lake Laogai in the outer ring.

Each neighborhood blends into another. The estates that decorate the countryside of the upper ring usually consist of the same things: a large, well kept garden, a stone wall dividing the properties, and a mansion with a seal atop the gate announcing what nation it's owner belonged to. Most of the homes here were Earth Kingdom, but a few Water Tribe, Fire Nation, and even Air Nomad vacation homes dotted the neighborhoods for visiting ambassadors. The owners had been moving in one by one since the beginning of the month for the festival, but the houses remain empty for most of the year.  
Gansey's thoughts were disrupted when the seat beside him was taken by the same girl from the platform. She tilted her head and batted her eye lashes. "I'm Jade," she said, leaning a little closer as the earth benders that moved the train kicked off from the station. He turned to her fully and gave a charming smile, the one he used when socializing with officials and ambassadors or commoners still deciding whether to reelect his mother. Sticking out his hand he responded enthusiastically "Richard Campbell Gansey the third."

She looked taken aback and raised her eyebrows as she shook hands with him. "Now tell me, Jade, what do you know about spirits?"

Even though the train moved quickly along the tracks, Ba Sing Se was the biggest city in the world. And getting across the rings, especially getting to the outer ring, took almost an hour not including all the stops at stations. Jade said goodbye when they stopped in the middle ring, where middle class citizens resided in town homes and drank tea in cherry blossom parks while feeding turtle ducks, they weren't as wealthy as the upper ring, but lived a lot better than those in the lower ring. The houses were less extravagant than upper class mansions, and were closer together, roofs within jumping distances of each other.

A theory proved right as Gansey watched a lanky teen in yellow and orange garb run beside the train on roof tiles, his feet were a blur, except for when he used a wooden staff he carried to vault the gaps between houses. He was an Air Nomad, maybe even an airbender. There weren't many of them these days. The ones that survived came out of hiding a few years after the war ended and peace was made between the nations. Gansey supposed he was in town for the festival, they didn't tend to stay in one place for very long. 

The teen using the roofs as his personal playground was gone suddenly, running like the wind in another direction. Gansey tried to continue to watch him , but the train turned at a junction and the air nomad was out of view.

Now Gansey was alone in the compartment, except for an old lady in the seat adjacent to him, and he grew bored again. An open window brought in a cool breeze, which was refreshing on a sweltering summer day like this. In the city, buildings and walls block most breezes. A leaf drifted into the train compartment from the open window, Gansey snatched it out of the air and watched his flame consume it. 

The old woman grinned and said conversationally "My grandson is a fire bender," when Gansey turned and smiled at her curiously, she pulled at the locket around her neck. It flipped open, inside was a small painting of a young boy, no older than three with amber eyes and an equally bright flame in his hands. The woman was Earth Kingdom, her son-in-law must be Fire Nation, Gansey thought. "I'm Lee Anne Xio, that's my grandson Keyo." 

She closed her locket and tucked it back into her blouse. She offered a candy to Gansey who took it with thanks, tossing it into his mouth and savoring the spicy flavor. "Gansey."

"You seem to know a lot about the spirit world. Are you a scholar?" She must have overheard the conversation Gansey was having earlier.

He swallowed the candy and uncrossed his ankles, leaning forward. "No, but I have always been intrigued by the spirit world and I’ve learned a thing or two about it."

She could tell he was going to go on, but her stop was coming up. Lee Anne began to gather her things and looked at him apologetically "I'm getting off at the next stop."

Gansey looked out the window to see the approaching station. "It has been swell, Lee Anne, but I'm heading on to the outer ring." She nodded and dug into her purse again to pull out two milk candies, placing them in Gansey's hand as the train pulled into the station. "Have fun, boy."

The train slowed to a stop, Gansey leaned with the momentum, and she stood, waving and stepping out of the wooden sliding door. Gansey was left alone, he thought about moving to a coach cabin, but decided against it when he saw tired workmen loading the train, going back to their homes in the lower ring. People that were lucky enough to have work permits often searched for work in the upper or middle ring. The day shift was ending, Gansey judged by the angle of the sun, and the people working the night shift would soon be headed into the middle and upper rings to take their places.

Gansey tapped his fingers impatiently on the back of the bench as the train left the station. He watched the sunlight bounce off the warm tiles of buildings before the train was encased in darkness as it passed through the wall into the lower ring.

The contrast of the middle and lower ring was astounding. Buildings rose almost to the level of the rail system, with no space between them. Streets covered in litter and grime were the veins of the city, the people swarming in them like blood cells. Families of four or more squeezed into one room apartments. Not even thieves could make a living, there was barely any money to steal.

It sickened Gansey, one of the things his mother swore when she joined the City Council of Advisors and Officials was to clean it up, improve the people's living conditions. She was trying, but it was a slow process. Ba Sing Se was called ‘the impenetrable city', but in reality, it was a delicate glass plate balancing on a pillar weakened by political corruption. Just a few decades ago, the Dai Lee had ruled the city, lying to the Earth king and threatening the citizens. The city had come a long way since then, Avatar Aang helped restore balance, but the fragile state could easily be broken again. When the war was still in motion, refugees fled to Ba Sing Se since it was the only strong hold left in the Earth Kingdom. The only place to put them was in the lower ring, which quickly became overcrowded. Now, most of the refugees had returned to where they came from, but some had began lives there and settled.

A smell arose from the streets, and Gansey quickly raised the paper windows to block it. The lower ring was the largest part of the city, and the smell only worsened the deeper into the city the train traveled.

At the next station, Gansey gazed down at the streets below to watch the people. Looking closer, Gansey could see a faction that the lower ring had produced. Judging by the blue colors and water tribe symbols everywhere, Gansey supposed that this was were many water tribesmen had flocked together and began their own settlement within the city.

The train made a sharp turn and was now headed towards the wall. This inner wall, which enclosed the city, and the outer wall were the two highest in the city. The upper and middle walls were dwarfed compared to these. They were thousands of feet high, earth benders standing at the top 24/7 to defend against threats.

Gansey looked away from the looming wall to look back over his city. If he didn't focus on the streets, something he could appreciate was the view. A sea of tall, slim, cream colored stone buildings with dark green roofs. Squares and courtyards cut out in random parts of the city with fountains or trees in the middle. Lime colored lanterns lit the streets and kept the city lively. It might not always be pretty, but it was Gansey's city.

There was total darkness for a span of five seconds before the train cleared the wall and Gansey was transported to another world. At least that's what it felt like. From the bustling life of the lower ring to the vast farmlands of the agrarian zone. Rolling hills cut into multicolored squares, each field growing a different crop. The farmers' homes and barns stayed closer to the wall, some were even built onto the wall with stairs leading up to them. Yellow stone roads traced across the countryside. One blackened road led to the mines. Gansey remembered riding in a carriage down the road with his family, going to inspect the mines. It was were he first met Adam, he remembered.

Nearing the station, Gansey gathered the things he brought, which wasn't much, stood and stretched. He grabbed onto the overhanging bar from the ceiling of the cart in preparation for the stop. This was the last stop before the train reversed and made it's trek back into the city.

He climbed off the monorail, waving thankfully at the earth benders that were responsible for moving the train along the tracks. Gansey was the only one who got off the train, no one else had ridden out to the outer ring. He watched as it pushed off from the station and started down the steps into the country. Trains came and went every five minutes in the city, but only came every half hour in the outer ring. There were also only four stations in the outer ring, compared to the thirty in the lower ring. Along one of the roads a zoo had been built over private property fields by the Avatar a little before the war had ended. Once he had left Ba Sing Se, there was a lot of debate on what to do with the animals who were transported and placed illegally. The government had to compensate the farmers whose land was taken up. It was a mess that Gansey was glad he didn't have to deal with.

A heard of fox antelopes grazing in a field nearby lifted their heads as Gansey approached and quickly moved to another location to continued feasting on grass.  
Up ahead, from the road Gansey was on, was his friend Adam Parish's home. A small two bedroom stone home built against the wall. A shabby barn was nearby, an ostrich horse tied to a post in front of it with several pickens and moo-sow in the yard. They immediately started to squeal when Gansey approached, much to his chagrin. No one could sneak up on someone with a picken. The front door swung open as Adam's mother stepped out, wiping her hands on her green robe. Gansey grinned and waved, she only nodded and turned to get Adam.

Gansey stood in the dirt front yard, looking at his reed sandals, now dusty and scuffed. He hoped he hadn't traveled all the way out here just to be turned down. That would be rather tedious.

The door swung open again and a familiar face stepped out into the golden sunlight. It shimmered in his eyes and reflected lightly on his brown hair. Calloused hands brushed it out of his eyes as he walked to meet Gansey. His sleeveless green shirt was tucked into coarse tan pants that were torn and patched up again and again.  
Adam had worked most his life in the mines, and on his father's farm around time for harvest. He helped his mother cook and clean the house, Gansey didn't want to think about what else went on in the Parish household.

Adam didn't have time for friends, and for all Gansey knew, he was Adam's only friend. He didn't think Ronan would count since they seemed to argue alot.

"Hey," Adam unconsciously rubbed his wrist. Without word, they began walking down a path different from the road Gansey had come in on.

"How are the mines?" Gansey asked conversationally.

"Dark. Dirty. Dangerous." He answered, lifting a stone from the ground and tossing it across a field of purple leaved vegetables. He wanted to get to the point, Adam wasn't much for small talk.

Gansey almost felt bad for asking Adam to come with him, he could see the exhaustion set in his shoulders, but he knew that Adam needed to go. He worked all day and came home do chores and sleep. Then repeat the next day. He needed to be a teenager every now and then.

Gansey cleared his throat and wiped strands of hair from his eyes. He spoke with a formality he learned from being raised in a political home, barely containing a smirk as he talked. "I wanted to formally invite you to the twentieth anniversary of the United Nations Festival," Gansey pulled the crisp paper from his pocket and handed it to Adam, who felt the green silk ribbon. This special invitation gave him access to the party inside the palace for the festival. "You would be my guest. You can stay at my place for the week."

Adam swallowed and read the fine script over again. He stopped walking and Gansey turned back to look at him. The silence between them was tense. Adam chewed thoughtfully on his bottom lip and his finger played with a frayed string at the bottom of his tunic. Gansey felt the hope rising in his chest along with nerves. Adam was as stubborn as a badgermole and insisted on working for everything handed to him. Thankfully, after some time given to consider, he rubbed the back of his neck and looked up at Gansey. “Is that why I was suddenly scheduled off for a week at the mines?” he asked, but already knew the answer to.

Nothing could get past Adam, he was the smartest person Gansey knew. He was hoping Adam would see it as a mere coincidence and go along with it. Adam would never take anything from anyone

Well, that had been much easier than he expected. Adam's pride mostly didn't allow him to take handouts or take more than a day off. A blue bruise on his upper left arm the shape of a hand caught Gansey's eye. He supposed Adam was at his breaking point and really needed some time to get away. Adam didn’t look at Gansey as he kicked the dirt. "What time should I...?"

Movement behind Adam's shoulder distracted Gansey, he looked and saw the shape of a man making his way across a Parish field toward the house. "Now would be best. Go grab your things now, I'll speak with him."

Adam glanced back and tensed but walked straight toward the house. Gansey walked the opposite direction toward Adam's father. Robert Parish was a tall man with wide shoulders, nearly yellow eyes, and a strong frame that mountains couldn't move. He was intimidating and everyone knew it. Gansey didn't feel comfortable as long as he knew Adam was under the same roof as that man.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Parish," Gansey stuck his hand out to shake and smiled charmingly. He may not like him, but he would respect him as long as he had to. Robert looked at his hand then looked back at him suspiciously before reluctantly shaking it. Robert never liked Adam hanging out with Gansey and Ronan, he never knew why. "What do you want, boy?"

"Me? Nothing. I'm just here to let you know that Adam will be staying with me for the next few days. At least until the festival ends." At the squinting of his eyes and tightening of his grip, Gansey knew he was running out of patience. Robert liked it even less when Gansey pulled Adam from the mines or house work for more than an hour. Gansey pulled his hand away and grabbed the bag of money from his belt. "I've already notified the mines, this is to compensate for his absence. I will send more if Adam stays longer than expected, but I plan to return him to you four days from now."

His charming smile was slipping and Gansey was having trouble keeping himself from loosing his cool. Gansey met the man’s suspicious gaze, it felt like staring down a platypusbear, but one of the best parts of growing up in politics was knowing how to read his opponent. He deeply disliked Robert and liked the barely hidden bruises all over Adam’s body even less. The less time Mr. Parish spent in the fields, the more time he spent at the local tavern, and the harvest was nearly over.

The door slapped shut, the sparking tension broke as they both looked back and saw Adam adjust the strap of a clothe bag slung over his shoulder. Mrs. Parish stood looking through the window, watching nervously.

Adam stepped up beside Gansey, the farthest side from his father, and looked down at his feet. Without breaking eye contact, and regaining his winning smile, Gansey threw an arm around his friend's shoulders and directed him down the road towards the train station. He didn't glance back at Mr. Parish, that man didn't deserve a second glance, but he heard the jingle of coins and knew his attention was now directed to counting the money.

Once seated on the train. Adam looked at Gansey expectantly, waiting for him to start his rant on spirits and what new information he had accumulated this time. Gansey returned the side glance. It wasn’t until the train kicked off from the station that he finally cracked a smile. He turned to Adam then. "Yesterday I visited Professor Malory at the university, we discussed the usual things, exchanged notes... and we think he found something. The key to ending my search: a map." Adam could see the excitement dance in Gansey's eyes, he was practically jumping up and down in his seat. "You see, several years ago, there was a Professor at the university named Zei who was head of the Anthropology Department…”

And thus began Gansey's lengthy and dramatic story. He loved telling the stories almost as much as he loved learning them. Adam vacantly wondered if Gansey ever considered becoming a historian. It was expected of him to follow in his father and mother’s footsteps in politics, but Gansey seemed to fit better at the university. He spent a majority of his time there anyways, pouring over books and researching any material he could get his hands on.

"Zei was an enthusiastic young man who believed knowledge was more valuable than gold. He jumped at any chance he got to learn about history or the world around him. His need for knowledge brought him to remote, strange, and often dangerous places. Zei tracked his travels on a map, he had been nearly everywhere all over the world, besides the Fire Nation- this was at the time of the war.

“He discovered many lost civilizations over his years of travel, but he longed to find the biggest of ancient discoveries, the grand prize: Glendower's Library."

Gansey paused. Adam wasn't sure if the break was to give him time to let the information sink in, or if it was just Gansey being dramatic. Adam wasn’t as interested in the spirit world as Gansey was, but he couldn’t help but feel excited too as he listened to his persuading friend. Gansey could probably read an insurance form and make it sound interesting.

"As you may know, there are places where our world and the spirit world connect. I'm not talking about doorways between them, like at the north and south poles. I'm talking about mediums where spirits have actually crossed over into the mortal world and reside here." Adam noted that Gansey was talking with his hands again. He did that when he was really passionate about something.

"Such as the Spirit Oasis in the North Pole, where the moon and ocean spirits live." Gansey added as an after thought. Adam sighed when Gansey looked at him like he expected an answer. “So what, is this Glen Owen’s-”

“Glendower,” Gansey corrected him. “Glendower’s Library. He is the spirit that knows ten-thousand things. He brought his library from the spirit world to the physical world. Together with his band of knowledge-seeking ravens, he collected knowledge from all over the world, which he put on display in his library in hopes that humanity would use it to better itself.”

Gansey looked proud of himself and Adam looked confused. “What? D-did you memorize that out of a book? That made no sense.”

Gansey huffed and rolled his eyes, pushing the brown hair out of his eyes. “Glendower has information about the spirit and physical worlds all in one place. If I can find it, then maybe I can finally get some answers.”

“So are you gonna track down Zei? He could probably help you find it, right?”

“Well, I can’t.” Gansey sighed and leaned back against the cushioned seats, rubbing at his bottom lip in thought. “He left on an exploration trip nearly thirty years ago. Zei’s been missing ever since. But, I talked to an old colleague of his. Apparently he was exploring the Earth Kingdom searching for Glendower. He could have found the library!”

Adam laughed at Gansey’s childish optimism as he became animated and excited again. He leaned back into his seat while Gansey practically buzzed next to him, his fire getting the better of him. Gansey often wafted warmth when he was too excited to control it. The train passed through the dark tunnel of the wall and entered the middle ring, having already traversed the lower ring while Gansey was explaining.

People had gotten on and off the train at stations without either boy noticing, and now the cart they sat in was nearly full of people heading to stations in the middle or upper ring. The sun was finally beginning to set in the west and a nice breeze was passing through the city from the shores of Lake Laogia. 

With that Adam leaned back against the wall of the cart, closing his eyes and feeling the rumble of stone in his bones. He felt the earth shift under him as the train sped along. If Adam didn’t work the mines or on the family farm, he would probably end up working the monorail system. Thats why Adam wanted so desperately to escape the lower ring life he had been born into. There was nothing here for him. He felt Gansey’s eyes on him, probably contemplating whether he should say something or not. Gansey worried about Adam a lot, sometimes to the point of annoyance. He didn’t need other’s sympathy or help. A little hard work never hurt him, but it did push him to the brink of exhaustion.

Two young women in long, silk dresses had entered their compartment at the last stop. They held to the bars hanging in front of Adam and Gansey’s seats. Standing in front of them, one of which said, “Hi, Richard.”

They both looked at the ladies. Gansey hesitated before he dived into a conversation like all politicians were trained to do. Her dress was light green and sleeveless and her hair hung around her shoulders in loose ringlets. Her whole attention was undivided for Gansey while she wore a false smile of interest as he discussed politics or spirits or something. Adam wasn’t paying much attention.

The other girl’s dark green dress had long sleeves that billowed around her wrists as she shyly pushed a strand of black hair behind her ear. Her hair had been pulled up into a perfect bun held in place by crystal clips. She wasn’t paying attention to Gansey, she was staring at Adam. The girl blushed furiously when he noticed, and Adam looked away, feeling his own cheeks redden too.

The train pulled to a stop and the girls made their leave, Gansey calling “Nice seeing you again, Jade.”

“You know her?” Adam’s attention was called back. Gansey continued to wave out the window at her and smiled. He said through his teeth “Not in the slightest.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is a piece I have dreamed about and worked on years ago, and I always wanted to finish it, but alas it is not finished and may never be finished. I did the best I could.


End file.
